Giving Thanks in Hungary

We hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We certainly did. We invited some of our Hungarian neighbors and two missionary friends, Mary Jill and Edith. Nancy fixed a traditional Thanksgiving meal including turkey breast, dressing, mashed potatoes and gravy, three bean salad and apple pie. We didn't serve two of our favorites, though--neither sweet potatoes nor cranberries were to be found. However, when Mary Jill and Edith arrived, they had a surprise for us--a can of cranberries! They had a can in their cupboard! That was so much fun!

We had a great time around the table. The Hungarians enjoyed the American food (as did the Americans and New Zealander). They laughed when Nancy made a "lake" in her mashed potatoes and poured gravy into it. Istvan said the pie tasted something like he had eaten at McDonald's, only bigger and tastier. Nancy even followed her family's tradition of forgetting something in the kitchen until the meal was almost over--the corn was left in the microwave! We all had a taste before dessert, though.

Not only did we share the food, but we shared what Thanksgiving means to us as Americans and believers, telling what we thanked God for. We thank God for a wonderful first Thanksgiving in Hungary.